Splendour in the Grass has received the coveted ‘Highly Commended
Award’ for their 2012 event at Belongil Fields, Byron Bay from the prestigious international Greener Festival Awards.
Ben Challis, Co-founder of A Greener Festival said “This award embodies the spirit of sustainability that festivals all over the world aspire to achieve. However it is Splendour In The Grass that has gone above and beyond the commercial aspects of greening to produce a remarkable event with a true ecological awareness.”
The award comes as organisers are set to install Splendour in its new home, North Byron Parklands in the Byron shire. Work has begun to ready the stunning 660 acre site for Splendour in the Grass 2013.
“We have gone from a Commended to Highly Commended Award and now aim for the Outstanding Award next year” said Environmental Scientist Mat Morris, who has managed Splendour’s environmental programs for the past ten years.
“Outstanding Awards” were given in Europe and the UK only. Other festivals in Australia to receive Highly Commended Awards were The Falls Festival in Victoria and Island Vibe on North Stradbroke Island. Commended Awards were given to Woodford Folk Festival, WOMADelaide and BluesFest.
Some of Splendour’s many winning environmental initiatives:
• Murf the recycling beast This impressive green beast (Material Recovery Facility) sorts recyclable materials such as cans, plastic bottles and cardboard from general waste through a series of conveyor belts, sorting lines and balers.
• Carbon offset tickets Splendour was the first contemporary music festival in Australia to offer a carbon offset ticket, which over the past five years alone has offset over 3,440 tonnes of carbon and resulted in $100,438 being invested in renewable wind energy generation. The amount of carbon offset is roughly equivalent to taking 1,000 cars off our roads for a year.
• Green Chiefs and Eco Cops Environmental students lived in tee pees, operating across the camp grounds and the festival itself, focused on recycling and general waste practices for patrons.
• Traffic reduction Initiatives included staging the arrival and departure of event patrons from Byron, free parking for cars with 3 or more passengers, car share riding via Jay Ride website and extensive use of shuttle buses.
A Greener Festival Ltd. is a not-for-profit company committed to helping events and festivals around the world adopt environmentally efficient practices.
www.splendourinthegrass.com
Downloadable high res images:
Photo 1 – Recycling at Splendour in the Grass 2012
Photo 2 – Murf (Material Recovery Facility) at Splendour 2012
Photo 3 – Mat Morris, General Manager of North Byron Parklands
Photo 4 – Splendour’s new home at North Byron Parklands